Italy - Factors to watch on April 29

Reuters has not verified the newspaper reports, and cannot vouch for their accuracy. New items are marked with (*).

POLITICS

Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi denied on Monday that he was anti-German, after he caused outrage at the weekend by suggesting Germany did not acknowledge the existence of Nazi concentration camps.

COMPANIES

SARAS

The refiner’s managing director Dario Scaffardi said on the sidelines of a shareholder meeting on Monday that Europe was “shooting itself in the foot” with sanctions on Russians. He said the sanctions on Rosneft head Igor Sechin was not a particular problem for Saras and would have no impact on relations between the two groups. Rosneft has 21 percent of Saras.

* ENI

The Italian oil and gas group said on Tuesday its net profit in the first quarter fell 14.3 percent on the year due to a weaker oil price and stronger dollar.

The energy company will hold a conference call at 1430 GMT.

The sanctions against Russia could impact commercial relations between Gazprom and Eni, Eni CEO Paolo Scaroni said, according to Il Sole 24 Ore.

BANCA MONTE DEI PASCHI DI SIENA

The lender holds its annual general meeting in Siena.

SAT

The majority of the board of Pisa’s airport operator considers the price of the takeover bid announced by Corporacion America Italia “not adequate”, SAT said in a statement on Monday. The bid, which ends on June 3, envisages a price of 13.15 euros per share for a total amount of 94 million euros.

MEDIASET

* BANCA POPOLARE DI MILANO

The bank’s management board is set to discuss on Wednesday afternoon the price of a planned rights issue, Il Sole 24 Ore said. Details of the share sale will be disclosed the following day, ahead of a May 5 start. Some expect BPM to have to price the new shares at a bigger discount after its shareholders rejected a planned governance reform, the paper said.

ALITALIA

The troubled airline is losing half a million euros a day, La Repubblica said.

FIAT CHRYSLER AUTOMOBILES

The group is studying the option of making Alfa Romeo a standalone company, Automotive News reported on Tuesday, as part of FCA’s latest plan to revive the struggling brand.

* TERNA

The board of Italy’s state lender Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP), which holds a large stake in the power network group, is expected to file after market closes on Tuesday a list of candidates to succeed Flavio Cattaneo as CEO of Terna, Il Sole 24 Ore said. The paper said Gianni Armani and Matteo Del Fante are in the running for the CEO post, while Catia Bastioli could become the chairwoman.